Household Electricity Use and Stated Acceptance of a Voluntary Renewable Energy Contribution in Six Turkish Provinces

This study examines household electricity use patterns and stated acceptance of a voluntary renewable energy contribution among households in the city centres of six Turkish provinces (Adana, Adıyaman, Gaziantep, Mersin, Osmaniye and Şanlıurfa). A cross-sectional questionnaire was administered to 453 households between March and May 2023. The outcome conventionally labelled willingness to pay (WTP) was elicited as a single hypothetical Yes/No item (“If paying such a contribution were voluntary, would you still pay it?”), with no monetary amount, bid sequence or payment card presented; it is therefore analyzed as a binary measure of stated acceptance rather than as a monetary valuation. Descriptive statistics, bivariate tests and hierarchical binary logistic regression were used to characterize household electricity use and to identify the correlates of stated acceptance. Beyond lighting, electricity was widely used for heating, cooling, hot water and small appliances, and most respondents wanted a renewable energy contribution to be itemized clearly on the bill. Nevertheless, a majority did not accept the hypothetical voluntary payment, and stated acceptance varied significantly by province and by income category. In the fully adjusted logistic model, the preference for bill itemization, the belief that the existing bill already included a renewable component, and postsecondary/bachelor education were the strongest positive correlates of stated acceptance, whereas income, bill level, dwelling size and current household renewable energy use were not independently associated. The findings support transparent, verifiable billing practices and targeted energy literacy measures, but should not be read as a monetary WTP estimate or as causal evidence.